Roof curbs are used in the roofing industry as a mounting base for many rooftop systems, rooftop units (RTUs) or appurtenances. For example, skylights and HVAC systems may be mounted to a roof curb that is positioned above a roofing surface and structurally mounted to the roofing deck or substrate. Known roof curbs include welded metal curbs that are rectangular in shape, having opposing end walls, and opposing side walls extending between the end walls. A mounting flange may extend outwardly from a bottom edge of the end walls and side walls to facilitate attachment of the curb to the roofing deck or substrate. Additionally, a nailer may be provided at an upper edge of the roof curb to facilitate attachment of the rooftop system, e.g. skylight or HVAC system and roof waterproofing layers or membranes. The roof curb is installed over and surrounding an opening in the roof deck or substrate that provides access to the interior of the building.
Conventional roof curbs may be field fabricated and installed on rooftops by experienced metal workers and welders, but this process is very time consuming, inefficient and potentially hazardous. For this reason, roof curbs are often pre-fabricated. Pre-manufactured roof curbs must be shipped to job sites for installation, and often must be stored after being manufactured and prior to shipping. Typical roof curbs are relatively large in size, and therefore, after being manufactured and prior to installation, take up a relatively large amount of space. For example, roof curbs may have a width of between two and four feet, a length of between four and eight feet, and a height of approximately twelve inches. In these dimensions, the number of roof curbs that can be shipped on a single pallet can be as low as seven. The large size of manufactured roof curbs results in relatively high costs associated with the storage and shipping of the roof curbs.
Thus, there is a need for an improved roof curb that reduces the costs associated with storage and shipping, while maintaining the curb's functionality and structural integrity when installed on a rooftop.